More Quarry Pool delays a major setback for Town Centre residents
Town Centre campaigners say that Shropshire Council lack of maintenance has led to ‘avoidable and foreseeable’ closure that will now last over 12 months. Shropshire Council say that 'Unforeseen delays' in the tendering process for work at Shrewsbury's main Quarry Pool has led to a set back in its reopening. Campaigners and town councillors feel that the lack of attention given to the Quarry Pool over years by Shropshire Council means this delay was ‘avoidable and foreseeable’.
The recent announcement will now mean that the May 2023 date for re-opening is moved forward, almost certainly meaning that the main pool will have been closed for over a year by the time it re-opens. Local campaigner Alex Wagner said: “The latest delays mean the main Quarry Pool will have been closed for over a year by the time it is fixed up. This is unacceptable, and was entirely avoidable and foreseeable. Local residents rallied to our call for a set-in-stone date to get the main pool back, and Shropshire Council’s announcement last year of a £400,000 refurb job by May 2023 was met with real contentment from residents in the loop. It will come as a huge setback to many that this has been reneged on. Liberal Democrats will be holding feet to the fire at Shirehall over this, and speaking up
for Town Centre residents who want their facilities back.”
Quarry and Coton Hill Councillor Nat Green added: “The Quarry Pool means a lot to residents of the Town Centre and beyond, yet has not received the attention such an important asset deserves. It was not inevitable that the main Quarry Pool would have to close for over a year, it just required a different approach to keeping the facility in a good condition, and not wasting so much money on plans to close it.”
The Liberal Democrat petition from last autumn read ‘We the undersigned call on Shropshire Council to guarantee that the main Quarry pool will re-open and will not be closed by stealth’ also urging Shropshire Council to announce a date for re-opening the main Quarry Pool. It received just under 200 signatures from Town Centre residents.